Tag: retirement

Posted on

School’s Out : Reflections From a Retired Teacher

The author blowing bubbles to celebrate her last day of teaching
Blowing Bubbles to celebrate the last day of my teching career.

Reflections From a Retired Teacher on the Last Day of School

Another school year is coming to a close. This week marks the five-year anniversary of my retirment from a 37-year teaching career, yet I still get giddy this time of year. I remember well those last few days spent with a class that had been my life for duration of a school year. The challenges, the victories. The kids that made me laugh, the ones that made me cry. The hope that I had given the best part of myself to each one of my students, knowing there were some who needed more. The lessons I taught and the lessons I learned. When my students filed out of my room on that last day of school, I was always happy and sad…but mostly exhausted.

Fortunately, teachers are a resilient lot. We bounce back over the summer and regain our enthusiasm for the next year. The butterflies build, you get your room ready and you greet your new class with excitment. The cycle repeats itself, yet each year is different from the ones before. It keeps you young, challenged, alive.

First Year Teacher
My First Year of Teaching

My first class http://seamslikeastory.com/my-first-class/

1975-76 Mrs. VanDeventer Kindergarten

However, you can’t go on forever. Teaching is an all-consuming profession, leaving little time or energy for anything else. There comes a point in each teacher’s life when it’s time to stop. I stayed with it longer than most. It was difficult to leave my students, my friends, my profession, but I knew it was time.

So what happens next? For me, the transition was rocky. I’d been in a school setting most of my life and the world “outside of the crayon box” was a foreign place. It took several years for me to adjust to my new life. I had to get used to being in charge of my own schedule, and even little things like meeting a friend at Starbucks in the middle of the day was a new experience. I kept a journal, found a writer’s group, and turned the ups and downs of my journey into a memoir. (see link below)

Now that I have time to explore, I’m discovering many interests. Writing has become a passion, along with sewing, traveling, and finding creative ways to spend time with children and grandchildren.

Today, I honor my past as an educator, and embrace adventures yet to come. I’m reminded of a line from a favorite movie, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. When Judi Dench starts a new career later in life she asks:”How many lives can one person have?”

“As many as you like,” she answers.

The author standing in Piazza San Marco in Venice.
Here’s to new adventures! (Me in Piazza San Marco in Venice)

So there you have it my friends: Reflections from a retired teacher. Enjoy life wherever you are in your journey, and (as one of my favorite authors and critique partner signs each of his emails) Go Well!

Threads of thought icon

Threads of Thought

What do you remember about your time as a student or teacher on the last day of school?

What tips might you share with someone who is getting ready to retire?

A bright blue book with a border of crayons across the bottom and the title OUt of the Crayon Box: Thoughts on Teaching, Retirement, and Life

Read more about my transition from teaching to retirement! http://amazon.com/author/debravandeventer

(Makes a great gift for someone who is retiring this year)

Posted on

And Sew On

The Life and Times of my Vintage Sears-Kenmore Sewing Machine

This post is going to show my age, but it’s time to tell the story of an old friend.

It was 1975. I’d just graduated from college when my in-laws gifted me the latest in sewing machines. A Sears Kenmore, Model 1320, ZIG ZAG Machine. I was ecstatic! It’s been with me through all the stages of my adult life.

Young Teacher

 I brought my new Kenmore into my first classroom in 1975 to make curtains for the classroom windows and the windows of the “housekeeping corner” my grandpa helped me to build.  A few years later, when teachers were no longer required to wear skirts or dresses, I made 1970s style tunics and tops to go with my slacks. (dress codes prohibited jeans)

1977…I’m a second year teacher, ready to face the world! My hand-sewn clothing helped to stretch my tiny salary.

When schools shut down for weeks after the blizzard of 1976, I occupied my time by piecing together a quilt. Interestingly enough, we were not required to make up the days we’d missed. To my knowledge, no one was permanently damaged from missing a few weeks of school. (The quilt is still unfinished. I’m waiting for another blizzard. Now that I live in Arizona, that’s not likely to happen.) 

The unfinished quilt

First Home

With more creativity than money, our first home brought lots of opportunities for sewing. I was glad my mom had taught me how to make curtains. Nothing fancy, just café-style, hem the sides and bottom edge, create a casing at the top for the rod to go through. I even attempted to make slipcovers and pillows for our hand-me-down furniture.

New Mom

During my stay-at-home-Mom years, I enjoyed making a few dresses for Kelli and curtains and a window shade for Matt’s room when he came along. My specialty was Halloween costumes. I discovered I could make almost anything using a “onesie” sleeper or a sweat suit. From lions, to raccoons, to a western vest for Pioneer Days, the Kenmore never let me down.

School Days

I returned to teaching when Kelli started kindergarten and Matt was two. Being a mom and teacher left little time for sewing. Though I’d made a little sewing area in the corner of our basement. It was dark and damp and the Kenmore sat idle for long periods of time. It made a spectacular appearance years later. When Kelli was in college, I sewed the dress she wore as she pledged to a sorority.

Retirement

When I retired, I became interested in sewing again. I now had space in our new home in Arizona to make a proper sewing “studio.” Far from its basement days, the Kenmore now sits on a stylish Ikea drop-leaf table, and when in use, moves to a small desk that overlooks our desert garden and the Catalina Mountains. I became obsessed with Christmas pillowcases that first year of retirement, then moved on to aprons, and ventured out into making clothing for myself.

I was obsessed with sewing Christmas pillowcases for awhile…
https://seamslikeastory.com/mens-shirt-upcycle/

Sew Sad

The Kenmore was happy to be back in regular use, but I could tell it was struggling to keep up. The bobbin winder quit working, and the machine became sluggish. One day, while working on a thick piece of fabric, I heard a clunk. My machine was in trouble. We had worked together for 45 years. I couldn’t give up on it now, yet it was old. In today’s world of computerized super-star machines, would they even have parts for my 1975 Kenmore?

Rehab

I phoned a local sewing and vacuum cleaner shop and found out they could repair it. During its six-week stay at the sewing machine spa, they cleaned and oiled the Kenmore, fixed the bobbin winder, and replaced the belts.

 I’m happy to have my old machine back. Over the years, we’ve learned each other’s quirks, and know each other’s limits. Kenmore and I will never do more than the basic straight stitch, zig-zag, or the occasional button hole, but that’s enough. Besides, we’ve been through a lifetime together. 

I’m thinking about giving the old, yellowed plastic cover a makeover. What do you think?

Threads of thought icon

Threads of Thought

Should I…..

Make a fabric cover to fit over the plastic one.

Paint the plastic cover.

Clean the original cover and rusty hinges as best as I can and keep it as is.

Proudly powered by WordPress